On Thursday, the Straits Time Index (STI) got a new look and 18 other sub-indexes (covering mid-sized stocks has launched to cater to watchers of Singapore's booming stock market. The revamped version comprises 30 blue-chip stocks instead of the current 47. The new STI has got 21 companies departing and 4 companies joining.
Those joining are aircraft maintenance firm SIA Engineering, Wilmar International (palm oil giant) , Yangzijiang Shipbuilding Holdings and Yanlord Land Group(high-end property developer that focuses on the Shanghai area).
Singapore Press Holdings, the Singapore Exchange and Britain's FTSE Group are spearheading this revamp.
The revamped STI is expected to be more robust and is a widely-used benchmark for the local market for investors. With about 15% of total warrant turnover on the Singapore market, it shows the level of interest in STI warrants. Another closely-watched index is likely to be the FTSE ST China Index, comprising 50 China plays.
Industry players expected a fuss-free, smooth transition, as this has been planned for since last year and the index calculations have already been running for a couple of months. To-date, it did really been $a smooth changeover.
